Tara's Surprise
by GWA
Summary: Welcome to the GWA's 2nd Guess the Author contest. Written by Zaratan!


Welcome folks to the second GWA Guess the Author Contest! It's a smaller group this time, but I don't think anyone will mind with this group.

The rules are simple! Simply PM me, Zaratan, with who you believe wrote each story. Send me your answers in one PM, to make things easier on me. No other method will be accepted. The person closest will get to choose the next subject for the contest! In the case of a tie, the person to get their response in first will get the win!

Revenant666 got the win last time, correctly guessing all 7 stories. As such, he got to pick this month's story topic… Unexpected! Believe me folks, this has lead to some interesting stories, even if we have 2 fewer of them. So sit back, relax, and enjoy!

Our authors…

**Zaratan** – Host supreme, celebrating his first year here, and hoping to become as productive again as in the past, with an on-going series and many other stories under his belt.

**Whitem** – Comedy, action, drama, smuff, he does it all with style and flair.

**Yvj **– A master at the art of the one-shot, and with several major stories, this artist is looking to claim a spot at the top.

**AtomicFire – **Eclecticwriter and reader, with a flair for taking the impossible and making it possible, including the most amazing Ron/Director story on the net!

And introducing, in his first story ever on the net…

**Brother to Vorlons – **An unknown as a writer here, but that doesn't mean squat as he brings us his inestimable talents for the first time!

There you have it folks! Be sure to check out all the stories, and place your votes before October 10th for a chance to win and choose the next topic!

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Tara's Surprise

Josh felt like he was floating on air as he made his way down the hallway. First period was a wash, he hadn't been able to focus on anything, but that didn't matter, not one little bit.

He was in love!

He was in full-blown, lighter than air, sappy, romantic, scary love!

And he couldn't be happier about it!

He couldn't get their last date out of his mind. The way her hair shone in the moonlight. The way her lip twisted just slightly in amusement when she was happy. The way her eyes sparkled through their walk in the park. Never had he felt like this!

He had thought he had been in love before. He was certain of it with Michelle back in grade nine. He thought it was with Kim, when they dated on and off. But with Tara, it was just so different. It was like there wasn't a thing in the world that he couldn't do, so long as he had her by his side. And then there was what she said to him at the end of the night…

_Their lips parted slightly, both gasping for breath, as they stood on the doorstep to Tara's house. Her hand stroked gently down his cheek, and he shivered at the contact._

_"Josh, I love you so much."_

_"Tara, I love you too. I can't believe how much I love you."_

_Her face scrunched up for a second, gazing into his eyes. She took a deep breath, as if steepling up the courage. "Josh… would you still love me if you found out some things about me?"_

_He gazed at her questioningly, noting the hesitation. "Tara, there is nothing you could say that would make me not love you."_

_"Are you sure? I mean, what if it was something very different, maybe even wrong?"_

_His hand gently cupped her chin, and he smiled at her reassuringly. "I love you, that's not going to change."_

_He had barely finished saying the words when her lips met his again, kissing him with a passion. She pulled away quickly though, giving him a smoldering look. "Better save some of that. Josh, I… I think I'm ready for us to take the next step in our relationship."_

_"Next… ohh…"_

_"Just not tonight. Tomorrow, come to my house. My parents will be gone for the weekend." Tara opened the door, turning back to smile at him innocently. "I love you."_

_"I love you too."_

Josh was counting the minutes, wishing the day would go quicker, so that they could get to the afternoon classes. Tara's morning classes had her on the other side of the school, and there just wasn't time to get over there to see her and not be late for class himself. He had seen her briefly that morning though, talking with Bonnie.

He was so distracted that he failed to notice the person blocking his way in the hall. He blinked as he noticed the scowl on the brunette's face, and wondered just what he might have done to tick off Bonnie.

"Hey Bonnie, I was…"

"We have to talk now!"

"But Bonnie, my class…"

Josh never finished what he was going to say, as he suddenly found himself yanked into an empty class, brooking no argument. Josh staggered a bit when she let go, and the brunette closed the door behind them.

"Tara told me what she is planning to do tonight."

Josh raised his hands defensively. "What Tara and I do is really…"

"Did I say I was finished?" Josh's mouth closed quickly. "I want you to know that if you hurt Tara, I will find you and hurt you."

"I would never hurt Tara. I love her!"

"That was what Michael said two years ago. Did you know about him?"

Josh shook his head quickly, not sure what she was talking about."

Bonnie's face softened a bit, though she was still scowling. "Tara loved him, and trusted him. She was ready to take the next step with him, to give herself to him. He blew it big time, and he hurt her!"

"I would never do that to her, you have to believe me."

"I know you believe that now." Her eyes lowered a bit, glancing down at the floor. When she looked up again, he could see the moisture in her eyes. "Look, I know you are a nice guy, but when you get to Tara's tonight… well, let's just say that Tara looks for certain things in guys. She really does love you, and I really don't want you to end up like Michael Jones. I'd hate to have to do that to you too."

"Wait… Michael Jones? The quiet guy who always flinches around everyone? That's the guy you're talking about?"

"Like I said… I don't want to have to do that to you too. Don't hurt her tonight!"

In a flash, Bonnie was gone, and Josh was left with a whole lot more questions than he had thought possible.

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Josh's mind was whirling as he got to gym class. What the heck could Tara's secret be that would have THAT kind of consequence? He had known Michael in grade nine. Not very well, they didn't exactly hang in the same circles, but enough to know what he was like. He didn't realize that he and Tara had gone out before, but after what Bonnie had mentioned…

It was as if, one day, Michael had just changed. One day, he was almost carefree, bragging along with the rest of the guys, and then… Josh thought long and hard, but he could not remember what had happened. It wasn't like he had known him all that well to ask him what the problem was, but now he was beyond curious.

"Hey Josh, what's happening?"

Josh glanced over, noticing Ron getting changed for class, though he didn't look eager for it. Honestly, he wasn't much either, since Barkin always had dodge ball on Fridays. "Hey Ron, how's it going? You and Kim going to Marcella's party next weekend?"

"Probably, if a mission doesn't come up. Kim enjoys dancing, and at least Marcella's folks keep a tight lid on any drinking."

Josh smiled at that. "Yeah, I never understood the preoccupation with drinking either. Seems pretty dumb to me."

"What about you and Tara? I take it you two are going as well?"

"Definitely! I just… well, Tara…"

Ron frowned slightly. "You know I'm not big on the guy talk much, especially since me and Kim started going out, but if something's bugging you…"

Josh sat down on the bench, pulling off his shirt as he talked. "Well, Tara told me she wants to take our relationship to the next level, and I have no problem with that. It's just… Bonnie grabbed me before class, and told me if I hurt Tara, that something bad would happen to me." Josh bit his lip slightly, pausing in his changing. "Ron, do you know Michael Jones?"

Ron's forehead scrunched in thought. "Well, I've seen him around. Why?"

"Do you remember him from grade nine?"

"Yeah, he was a bit of a talker. I usually just tuned him out, I figured most of what he was saying was garbage."

"Did you notice when he suddenly… got quiet?"

Ron's eyes widened slightly, as he finished tying his shoes. "You know, now that you mention it… what does this have to do with Tara and Bonnie?"

"Michael and Tara used to go out. She was apparently ready to take things to the next level with him as well, but Bonnie said he hurt her. Now… I mean, with Tara asking me if there was anything that would make me not love her, and then Bonnie and this stuff with Michael… I just don't know what to expect tonight."

Ron sat thoughtfully for a moment, pondering the situation. "You know, there's only one thing I can recommend. Talk to her."

"Talk to her?"

"Sure, when something is bugging me or KP, we talk it out. We sit down, work out what's bugging us, and go from there. I mean, you've said that there really isn't anything that would make you stop loving her, so just talk it out. Find out what is bugging her, and go from there."

Josh's shoulders settled a bit, as relief set in. "You know, that's good advice. I'll talk to her at lunch, we'll clear the air, and everything will be good for tonight. Thanks Ron!"

Ron just shrugged. "No big. Of course, now comes the major drama!"

"What drama?"

Ron looked to the change room door, a pained expression crossing his face. "We now have to actually go out there and spend an hour dodging projectiles while Barkin tells us how we're doing it wrong."

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Lunch did not exactly go as planned, not the way that Josh wanted it to anyways. Tara seemed to almost avoid him, making sure to sit with the other cheerleaders. Quite often, she would glance up at him, eyeing him almost warily. Several times, Josh moved to go over to her, but a glance from Bonnie and the rest of the group. Finally, he settled on joining Ron and Kim for lunch.

Ron cast a glance back at the cheerleaders when Josh sat down, wincing in sympathy. "Guess the talking thing isn't going so well, is it?"

"Not really." He dug his fork into his lunch, eyeing the blob on his plate as it seemed to move on its own.

Kim had already pushed her tray away, glancing between Ron and Josh. "What's the problem?"

Josh spent the next couple of minutes explaining the situation to Kim, who nodded thoughtfully throughout. When he finally finished, he looked to her expectantly.

"Josh… Tara loves you a lot, and I don't want you to hurt her when she talks to you tonight."

Both Josh and Ron looked to her in surprise. "KP, what…"

"Ron, this is between Josh and Tara, and we won't get in the middle of it."

Ron didn't notice, or pay attention, to the look that Kim gave him that told him to drop the issue. "Wait, do you know what this is all about?"

"Ron, we will drop this now."

An uncomfortable silence pervaded, as Ron realized just how deep he might be in trouble. Josh just watched on, his heart in his throat. If something like this could cause tension between Kim and Ron, the ultimate of couples in Middleton history, than whatever Tara had to talk about was big indeed.

Monique sat down quickly beside Kim, noticing the tension. Her gaze shifted over the three of them, her curiosity piqued. "Okay, WTS?"

Kim leaned over quickly, whispering to the dark skinned girl. Monique's eyes went wide. Her gaze shifted quickly to Josh, and he quickly felt like an animal at the zoo, the way she stared at him.

"Really?" Monique's voice was low, little more than a whisper. "I didn't really think…"

"Well, you know the type of guys she likes."

"You know, she did have that crush on Ron…"

"Don't even go there. You know I would never…"

Both girls stopped as they realized their conversation had gotten loud enough for both of the guys to hear. Ron just shook his head. "Oh come on, you can't just say stuff like that and not tell us the rest."

Kim and Monique just gave Ron a look, and he backed down quickly. But that didn't help Josh, who was now VERY worried!

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Josh walked up to Tara's door trepidaciously. A thousand thoughts were going through his mind about what could happen tonight. Something that could put strain between Kim and Ron, force Bonnie to hurt someone so much that it changes who they are completely. Hell, just Kim and Bonnie agreeing about anything was enough to terrify even the most clueless person.

Josh took a few deep breaths, before knocking lightly on the door. Just last night, he had been waiting for this moment for so long, at least the hint of it that Tara had given him. Now, he was almost terrified.

"Come on in!"

Josh hand shook slightly as he reached for the doorknob, not sure if he wanted to do this or not. But one thing kept going through his mind, the thing that made this both easier and harder. He loved her. He loved her, and he knew he would do anything for her.

The lights in the living room were dim. Not dark enough to impair his vision, just enough to provide a romantic mood. He cast his gaze around, trying to find Tara, but his girlfriend was no where to be seen.

"I'll be down in a minute Josh."

He glanced up the stairs, before slowly moving to the living room. He sank down into the deep cushions, trying to force himself to breath evenly. It was a quiet few minutes, as he pondered the possibilities. Several times he wanted to jump from his seat and bolt out the door, but he held firm in his belief that he could get through anything because he loved her.

The quiet click of heeled footsteps sounded behind him, and he resisted the urge to turn. Tara made her way into the room, smiling shyly. He noticed the robe that hid most of her from view, and he briefly wondered if maybe the big secret was that Tara was actually a guy. That would be something that could provoke Bonnie's response, if Michael was going to talk about something like that. He wasn't too sure how he'd react yet if that turned out to be the case, but he resolved himself to the fact that he loved her no matter what.

"Josh," Tara looked quite timid, watching Josh the entire time, "I want you to…"

"Tara, I love you, and no matter how scared I am right now, I want you to know I will love you no matter what this is all about. Even after Bonnie threatened me and the whole talk with Kim and Monique, and…"

"Bonnie threatened you?"  
Josh's eyes went wide as he looked up at her. "She didn't tell you? She told me about Michael and how if I hurt you, she'd make sure she did the same thing to me that she did to him. Tara, I just want you to know, I love you and I would never hurt you, no matter what you tell me."

He could see the tears welling up in Tara's eyes, but she was still smiling. "I love you so much Josh. That's why… that's why I want to share this with you."

Josh steeled himself for anything as Tara pulled the robe away from her body. When he finally looked, his eyes went wide.

Tara… in a full latex suit that hugged everything perfectly.

"Josh… I… I'm a dominatrix."

Josh was stunned, but slowly a smile spread across his face. With the release of the breath he hadn't realized he had been holding, he began to laugh.

Tara grabbed for the robe. "I thought…"

Josh grabbed the robe quickly, taking hold of her hand. "I'm sorry Tara, I just… after what everyone was going on about today, I was expecting worse. I mean, I thought you might have killed someone or been a guy or something. I have to say… I'm actually relieved."

The robe slipped free from her grip. "So… you're not… freaked out?"

He rose to his feet, kissing her hand gently. "Tara, I love you, no matter what. I was ready to love you if you had told me you were really a guy. So this," he eyed her outfit appreciatively, "doesn't bother me a bit."

The tears were flowing freely now as she pulled him close, hugging him tight. "Oh God Josh, I… I just love you so much!"

The remained like that for a bit, until Tara had calmed down enough. Slowly, they pulled away, their eyes locking, their love for each other shining through. Josh kissed her softly. "So where do we begin… Mistress?"

Tara smiled seductively, her eyes now playful. "I think it's time to head upstairs so your Mistress can have some fun." She took his hand, half dragging him to the stairs. "I'll have to remember to teach Bonnie a lesson though about threatening my boyfriend."

The pair laughed as they made their way to the bedroom.

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Kim and Ron both smiled as they noticed Josh and Tara walking hand in hand down the hallway when Monday rolled around. Monique was quick to join them, and the two girls just sighed at the sight.

Ron took hold of Kim's hand, giving it a quick squeeze. "I guess they talked it all out."

"I guess Josh was the right one after all."

Ron noticed the smile on Kim and Monique's faces, still remembering the whole strange conversation on Friday. "So KP, are you going to tell me what it was all about now?"

"Nope."

"Oh come on, just a hint?"

"Nope."

Kim headed down the hall now, and Ron jumped to keep up with her. "What's the big secret? You know I'm good with secrets."

"Nope."

"Can you show me then? That way, you don't have to say anything."

Monique started chuckling as Kim blushed deeply. Taking advantage, Monique piped in. "Maybe if you're REAL good, Kim will show you one day."

"MONIQUE!"

"Oh come on KP, you can show me, can't you?"

Kim blushed deeply, but she had to admit, it was funny. "Well… maybe if you're good."

With that, both girls headed off down the hallway, laughing loudly, leaving a confused Ron to trail behind them.

* * *


End file.
